In this vast continent, aristocracies and kingdoms were locked in perpetual conflict, their rivalries often manifesting as relentless warfare. Within this turbulent world, aristocrats and knights constituted but a small fraction of the populace. The majority of soldiers who fought on the frontlines were conscripted from the sprawling peasant population.

As the wars raged on, a tragic consequence emerged. Many parents lost their lives in these brutal conflicts, leaving their families landless and destitute. In these dire circumstances, the fate of orphaned children hung in the balance. Throughout the continent, a network of orphanages existed, some self-sustaining but many reliant on the support of aristocrats and kingdoms who relied on these orphans as future manpower. These institutions became the last hope for those young souls who had lost their families to the ravages of war.

People always say, that for an orphan who grew up in an orphanage, the day the child turned 15 would be the day they entered adulthood.

In other words, the orphan would be forced to walk their own path once they reach that age.

They were given 2 choices. It was either to serve under aristocrats, or go out into the world.

Choosing the latter, the mocha haired girl, Daciana headed for the Mercenaries Guild.

Mercenaries Guild, like Merchants Guild was an organisation that was not tied to any noble family or kingdom despite having branches in towns and cities throughout the continent. Because of their neutral status, unlike knights and serfs, mercenaries and merchants were able to travel freely between territories. The downside was unlike knights and serfs who were protected by lords in their territories in exchange for their allegiance, merchants and mercenaries had no stable life. They had to rent their living place and earn the living by themselves. The guilds only acted as mediating agency between clients and guild members. Guild members had to pay fee which granting them licence to travel between territories.

Entering the street of Aysgarth town, a Daciana was immediately attracted by the monumental wooden building at the side of the street and unconsciously slowed her footsteps.

"Mercenaries Guild" sign was displayed above the tall door.

After she entered the big hall, she was shocked by the crowd of rowdy men gathered inside despite the early morning.

This building consisted of a large hotel and a bar——which both could be considered as one—— with a office on top of it.

Simply put, this place was a combination of the three. Thus, the incredibly lively atmosphere was nothing short of ordinary.

The crowd consisted of men of different races and age as they held their weapons and talked merrily with each other in groups.

Squeezing through the gaps among the crowd, she walked towards the receiving area.

A long queue had formed in front of the desk. People had come to take requests, report progress, or even make a request.

"And? How’s the situation of the wolves in the mountain ridge?"

"It was nothing. If you want to earn more cash, it would be better off looking for ruins or something!"

"But that would not count as a contribution anymore."

"I heard that a group of bandit was stirring up trouble near the capital. It might be a good time to earn more money to me."

A spear-wielding mercenary was talking with another adventurer clad in heavy armor.

Hearing the contents of their conversation was more than she could have imagined, Daciana gasped in shock for the third time.

Gripping her small fits tightly, she steadied herself and made a decision in her heart.

She was aware, that the occupation of a mercenary was not as easy as the rumors say.

"Good morning! What business do you have here today?"

As Daciana was pondering on her thoughts, she was already next in line for reception.

The receptionist in charge of the counter was a lady with a gentle expression that was a lot older than her.

Daciana gulped as she felt her nervousness dissipating a little. Opening her mouth, she then spoke.

"I…I want to become an……adventurer."

"I……see."

Yet, the female receiptionist’s reply was different from her expression.

An indescribable look appeared on her face for a brief moment, as she answered ambiguously.

Daciana felt like she was being evaluated from head to toe and couldn’t help but lower her head in embarrassment.

But then, the female receptionist put on a professional smile to smooth over the awkwardness from before.

"Alright then! Can you read and write?"

"Uhh, yes. I learned some……in the orphanage."

"Oh, i see. You just came out from an orphanage.."

In that case, please fill out this adventure sheet. "If you have something you don’t understand, please feel free to ask."

Mercenary sheet—The brownish parchment that had golden-coloured squiggle-ish words written on it.

Name, Gender, Age, Job, skills..

Unexpectedly, the application form was simple.

Daciana nodded her head and held the pen with trembling hands.

Dipping it into the ink pot, she started filling the form word by word.

Passing the completed form back to the female receptionist, the female receptionist then started checking through it and nodded from time to time.

Afterwards, she took out a silver sharp-edged pen and started engraving words on a small piece of white metal tag.

When she had finished, she passed the small metal tag to the Daciana.

Receiving it from her, Daciana looked at the porcelain tag and realized that the words engraved on it was what she just wrote on the parchment.

"This is for your level as a mercenary, as well as a proof of identity."

The female receptionist then said something again with a cheeky tone.

Seeing the Daciana blink her eyes in confusion, she couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

"Just in case anything happens to you, it will be used to corroborate your identity. So please, try not to lose it."

——If anything happens—?

Daciana briefly didn’t understand what she meant, but realised a moment later.

She understood that the metal tag with the writing "Copper" and "Daciana" would be used to identify who she was, should her corpse be mutilated beyond recognition.

"Any mercenary upon registration would be given the 'Copper' rank which is the lowest."

The female receptionist had an ambiguous look on her. Was she worried, or is it that she had given up?

Daciana couldn’t figure it out.

 "We will look into the beasts or enemies you have beaten, contributions to the society and your personality to define whether you are fit for a rank up. It’s quite strict, you know?"

"Requests are pinned onto that board. Normally, you would choose a request that is compatible with your own rank…"

She pointed to the large board that almost took up the whole wall behind Daciana.

But due to the large crowd of adventurers from before tearing large number of requests off, the requests on the board was few and scattered…..

Still, to be able to use such a large board was a sign that the number of requests must be quite the number.

"But, I personally suggest you start by cleaning the sewers and drains to get yourself used to your job."

"Eh? Weren’t adventurers supposed to hunt beasts and fight in wars……"

"To be safe and survive, that's the best option."

Alright, that’s it for registration. Good luck!"

"Ah. yes! Thank you very much!"

Daciana bowed her head in gratitude and left the reception counter.

With the white metal identity tag over her neck, she breathed a sigh of relief.

In short, the registration was complete. Although the process was somewhat disappointing, she was finally a mercenary.

"What was she going to do, from now on?"

All she had was a luggage bag where she kept a change of clothes, and dozens of ligneous coins. These wooden coins were the cheapest money and she could survive until a week using them. Luckily, she didn't need to pay anything for registration.

The second floor of the guild looked like a hostel built specially for low-ranked adventurers.

"Now, I’ll just look for a cheap room and see what kind of requests there is for today." She muttered to herself.

"Hey, want to go on an adventure with us?"

"Huh?"

A male voice called to her.